Michigan City officials warn riverboat revenue shortfall will force cuts, pause new riverboat-funded capital

Michigan City officials told the Common Council in a March 6 budget workshop that riverboat wagering revenues have declined sharply from pre‑COVID projections and that the administration will not budget new riverboat‑funded capital for the coming year.

At the start of the workshop, an administration official said, “The riverboat money that we've been receiving has been declining” and warned council members the city must begin a more conservative budgeting approach. The controller, Mary Anne Wall, said the administration submitted its annual report and presented actual cash balances to the council for review.

Wall walked members through the budget workbook and the Department of Local Government and Finance (DLGF) submittal process, and she highlighted a large gap between projected and realized riverboat receipts. “We projected $6,883,000 of revenues. We only received $3,328,000,” she said, citing figures in the annual report. Wall also reported the riverboat cash‑balance projection of roughly $5,000,879 was instead $3,601,531 on the year‑end report.

Because prior budgets reflected higher, pre‑pandemic riverboat income, the administration said it will use the rainy‑day fund for any short‑term needs but will stop programming new riverboat capital in the 2024 budget except for previously committed obligations. “We over‑projected more revenues. We should not have projected $6,000,000 in revenues. Mistake,” Wall said.

Council members pressed for clarity on the numbers and the administration’s approach. One member summarized the difference between the adopted levy and receipts: “The property tax was $24,000,000 before the levy; we received $16,000,000,” highlighting the state circuit‑breaker reductions that lower property‑tax receipts. The controller said those state adjustments are already reflected as the $16,000,000 figure used in the workbook totals.

Officials said the riverboat revenue decline results from increased regional gaming competition and from contractual formulas that reduce the city’s share when additional casinos open. The administration said it is meeting with casino operators and legislative contacts to explore options and that it will tighten monitoring of departmental spending: quarterly one‑on‑ones with department heads and closer use of the budget performance report.

The meeting did not include any formal council vote. Officials said they will return with another update in June and will present any request for rainy‑day appropriations or budget amendments to the council for formal action.

What’s next: the administration will run additional revenue projections, continue meetings with departments and casino partners, and bring any proposed budget adjustments to the council before finalizing the 2025 budget schedule.